The Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm announced on October 5, 2026, that the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine would go to three scientists for developing optogenetics, a technique that uses light to control the activity of specific nerve cells.
The laureates are Karl Deisseroth of Stanford University, Peter Hegemann of Humboldt University of Berlin, and Georg Nagel of the Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg. According to Jiji Press, Deisseroth is 54, Hegemann is 71 and Nagel is 73.
The official citation reads: "for their discoveries concerning light-gated ion channels and optogenetics," according to the Nobel Assembly's announcement reported by multiple outlets, including STAT News and Scientific American.
What the laureates discovered
Hegemann and Nagel identified a light-sensitive protein called channelrhodopsin while studying how a single-celled green alga senses light. When exposed to blue light, the protein forms a channel that lets charged ions flow into the cell, producing an electrical signal, according to STAT News and Scientific American.
Deisseroth later inserted the gene for this protein into mammalian neurons, which allowed researchers to trigger nerve-cell activity on demand simply by shining blue light on the cells, according to Jiji Press and Yahoo News Japan. He went on to show that the same approach could be used to manipulate specific circuits in the brains of living mice and alter their behavior and emotional responses.
Describing the method to STAT News, Deisseroth said light had traditionally been used in science and medicine mainly "as an observational tool," but with optogenetics, "we're using light to cause things to happen" in specific cells.
Scientific American noted that the concept traces back to a 1962 proposal by Francis Crick that light might one day be used to control specific types of cells, an idea the three laureates' work eventually turned into a working laboratory tool.
Why it matters for medicine and research
Optogenetics has let neuroscientists map which brain circuits govern specific behaviors and how disruptions in those circuits relate to disease, according to Scientific American. Possible applications under study include Parkinson's disease, epilepsy, depression, addiction and dementia, according to Scientific American and Yahoo News Japan. The technique is also being used in early clinical trials to try to restore vision in patients with retinitis pigmentosa by introducing light-sensing proteins into retinal neurons, according to Scientific American.
The award
The three laureates will share the prize money, which both STAT News and Jiji Press reported as 12 million Swedish kronor, equivalent to roughly 1.2 million US dollars, or about 180 million yen according to Jiji Press, to be split equally three ways. The award ceremony is scheduled for December 10, 2026, in Stockholm, according to Jiji Press and Yahoo News Japan.
STAT News noted that this is the 41st time in the prize's history that three researchers have shared the Physiology or Medicine award, and that only 14 of the 235 laureates in the category since 1901 have been women.
2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine — laureates| Laureate | Affiliation | Age | Key contribution |
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| Karl Deisseroth | Stanford University, United States | 54 | Introduced channelrhodopsin into neurons; developed optogenetic control of brain circuits in living animals |
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| Peter Hegemann | Humboldt University of Berlin, Germany | 71 | Co-discovered the light-sensitive protein channelrhodopsin in green algae |
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| Georg Nagel | Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg, Germany | 73 | Co-discovered channelrhodopsin and its function as a light-gated ion channel |
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